ALAMEDA, Calif. (KRON) — There will be a Justice for Jasper rally Monday outside the Alameda County Courthouse.
People are demanding new District Attorney Pamela Price explain what kind of punishments her office will be seeking for the three men accused of killing Jasper Wu, a 23-month-old shot and killed during a freeway shooting back in November 2021.
Rally organizers are demanding the district attorney’s office be more transparent about how it will pursue Jasper Wu’s case. Many worry the charges will be too lenient.
“When you see Jasper’s iconic picture of him in the Superman outfit, it almost breaks your heart,” Bob Yee said. Yee still gets choked up to this day when talking about Jasper Wu.
It’s a story that’s stuck with him longer than he could have imagined. Jasper was killed just days before his second birthday.
The toddler was struck and killed by gunfire while in the back seat of the car his mom was driving on I-880 in Oakland.
The case went cold for over a year until December when three men were arrested for Jasper’s murder. They were identified as Trever Green, Ivory Bivins and Johnny Jackson.
Prosecutors say this was a gun battle between two rival gangs from San Francisco. The three men are awaiting preliminary hearings. If convicted, many are questioning how long of a sentence prosecutors will request.
That’s because Price has directed her office to pursue alternatives to prison time when possible.
“A directive from Pamela Price having her staff seek minimal sentencing in pretty much all cases. She also directed her staff to remove sentencing enhancements and that’s pretty serious.”
In an exclusive interview with KRON4, Price told us there is no truth to the reports that her office is seeking non-carceral punishment in this case.
She says these three men are facing “very serious charges.”
But Price did not elaborate on what those charges are.
And it’s that perceived lack of transparency that has people like Yee concerned.
“What we are looking for as a community? What are the specifics? How many years are talking about? Are we talking about life? Are we talking about no parole? Is the death penalty on the table? At the end of the day, this is all about Jasper, this is about justice for Jasper.”
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Now, Yee is helping organize a protest outside the Alameda County Courthouse.
“We got together and said we have to do something. We came up with this idea for a protest. We asked people ‘Will you join us?’ We were floored by the number of people who said yes,” Yee said.
Monday’s rally starts at noon at the Alameda County Courthouse. A statement will be provided from the Wu family.
Price sat down for an exclusive interview with KRON4’s Haaziq Madyun to talk about this case and several others that have drawn national attention.
